Skip to content
Partly AI · Narrator voice
Cover of short format F5

Short formats · The defence · F51:33 min

No crime without a law?

No crime without a law? That was the objection of all defense counsel at Nuremberg: only he can be punished who broke a law in force at the time of the act. Here is the defense in the original audio and the court's answer from the judgment, both verbatim.

7 documented0 open11 Sources

StatementsSources

Short format F5

Statements

Every on-screen statement of the episode, in order. Red only when the source carries it word for word; open when a check is missing.

  1. 01
    question

    No crime without a law?

  2. 02
    documented

    Motion of all defense counsel, 19 November 1945: only he can be punished who offended against a law in existence at the time of the act and imposing a penalty.

    IMT Vol. 1, p. 168IMT Vol. 1, p. 169

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  3. 03
    documented

    Prof. Hermann Jahrreiss, counsel for Jodl, 4 July 1946.

    IMT Vol. 17, p. 458

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  4. 04
    documented

    Jahrreiss: let us assume the Charter does not formulate criminal law already valid, but creates new, and therefore retroactive, criminal law.

    IMT Vol. 17, p. 460IMT Vol. 17, p. 458

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  5. 05
    documented

    Jahrreiss: in that case the defendant cannot be guilty in the sense that he was aware of the illegality of his behavior.

    IMT Vol. 17, p. 460IMT Vol. 17, p. 458

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  6. 06
    documented

    Francis Biddle, member for the United States, reads the judgment, 30 September 1946.

    IMT Vol. 22, p. 459IMT Vol. 1IMT Vol. 22, p. 411

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  7. 07
    documented

    Judgment: the maxim nullum crimen sine lege is not a limitation of sovereignty, but is in general a principle of justice.

    IMT Vol. 22, p. 462

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  8. 08
    documented

    Judgment: whoever attacks neighboring states without warning, in defiance of treaties and assurances, must know that he is doing wrong.

    IMT Vol. 22, p. 462

    Quote checked verbatim, two AI reviewers: holds
  9. 09
    question

    Both sides are in the record. Which convinces you?

Short format F5

Sources

Trial of the Major War Criminals before the International Military Tribunal (IMT, “Blue Series”), English edition. Page = printed page.

  1. IMT Vol. 1, p. 168

    Document
    IMT Vol. 1 (Antrag aller Verteidiger, 19.11.1945)
    Volume
    1
    Page
    168 (PDF page 184)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    MOTION ADOPTED BY ALL DEFENSE COUNSEL 19 November 1945

  2. IMT Vol. 1, p. 169

    Document
    IMT Vol. 1 (Antrag aller Verteidiger, 19.11.1945)
    Volume
    1
    Page
    169 (PDF page 185)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    This principle is to the effect that only he can be punished who offended against a law in existence at the time of the commission of the act and imposing a penalty.

  3. IMT Vol. 17, p. 458

    Document
    IMT Vol. 17 (transcript 4.7.1946)
    Volume
    17
    Page
    458 (PDF page 470)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    PROFESSOR DR. HERMANN JAHRREISS (Counsel for Defendant Jodl)

  4. IMT Vol. 17, p. 458

    Document
    IMT Vol. 17 (transcript)
    Volume
    17
    Page
    458 (PDF page 470)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    DAY Thursday, 4 July 1946

  5. IMT Vol. 17, p. 460

    Document
    IMT Vol. 17 (Plädoyer Jahrreiss, 4.7.1946)
    Volume
    17
    Page
    460 (PDF page 472)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    Let us assume for the sake of argument that the Charter does not formulate criminal law which is already valid but creates new, and therefore retroactive, criminal law.

  6. IMT Vol. 17, p. 460

    Document
    IMT Vol. 17 (Plädoyer Jahrreiss, 4.7.1946)
    Volume
    17
    Page
    460 (PDF page 472)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    In that case the defendant cannot be guilty, either before himself or before others, in the sense that he was aware of the illegality of his behavior.

  7. IMT Vol. 22, p. 459

    Document
    IMT Vol. 22 (transcript 30.9.1946)
    Volume
    22
    Page
    459 (PDF page 469)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    THE PRESIDENT: I now ask Mr. Biddle to continue the reading of the Judgment.

  8. IMT Vol. 1

    Document
    IMT Vol. 1 (Mitglieder des Gerichtshofs)
    Volume
    1
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    MR. FRANCIS BIDDLE, Member for the United States of America

  9. IMT Vol. 22, p. 411

    Document
    IMT Vol. 22 (transcript)
    Volume
    22
    Page
    411 (PDF page 421)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    DAY Monday, 30 September 1946

  10. IMT Vol. 22, p. 462

    Document
    IMT Vol. 22 (Urteil, 30.9.1946)
    Volume
    22
    Page
    462 (PDF page 472)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    In the first place, it is to be observed that the maxim nullum crimen sine lege is not a limitation of sovereignty, but is in general a principle of justice.

  11. IMT Vol. 22, p. 462

    Document
    IMT Vol. 22 (Urteil, 30.9.1946)
    Volume
    22
    Page
    462 (PDF page 472)
    Check
    quote found verbatim on the page

    Wording of the source

    To assert that it is unjust to punish those who in defiance of treaties and assurances have attacked neighboring states without warning is obviously untrue, for in such circumstances the attacker must know that he is doing wrong, and so far from it being unjust to punish him, it would be unjust if his wrong were allowed to go unpunished.

Further sources of the episode

IMT Vol. 1, pp. 168 to 169 · Vol. 17, pp. 458 to 460 · Vol. 22, pp. 459 and 462 · audio NARA 238.3118B, 238.3907B · film NARA 111-ADC · stamp sound: Subhashish Panigrahi, CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

Portraits in the video (2): image credits
  • Francis Biddle: Harris & Ewing · public domain · Wikimedia Commons (Francis Biddle cph.3b27524 (cropped).jpg)
  • Hermann Jahreiß: Department of Defense. European Command. Office of Military Government for Germany (U.S.). Office of the Chief of Counsel for War Crimes · public domain · Wikimedia Commons (Dr. Hermann Jahreiss, expert witness for the defense - DPLA - eb3752e28d90fec6739adcd385c652d5.jpg)

How to cite this episode

FUNDSTELLE: „No crime without a law?“, Nuremberg Files, Short format F5. https://fundstelle.online/en/short/f5/

Found a mistake? Write to us; every correction is listed with its date on the corrections page. Corrections

Narrator voice partly AI-generated (labelled). Original sound, transcripts and films come from public archives, credited per episode.